Rwanda extradition ruling by France is bad for justice

A French court has ruled it will block the extradition of a leading genocide suspect to face trial in Rwanda (Report, 29 September). Yet a separate French court ruled three times that Agathe Habyarimana, the wife of the former Rwandan president, cannot be granted asylum because "she was at the heart of the genocidal regime".

This refusal now by France to hand her over, despite the appalling crimes its own independent asylum commission finds her responsible for, is for purely political reasons. She knows too much about the complicity of France and its military in the lead-up to and during the Rwandan tragedy, when François Mitterrand's government fully supported the genocidal government of her husband.

Nicolas Sarkozy may preach about overturning tyrants and murderous regimes in Libya and Ivory Coast, but it seems he is happy to welcome those leaders who worked with France, whatever their crimes, to a comfortable Parisian retirement – in Agathe's case a €3m house in an affluent suburb. The dozens of other alleged genocidaires also currently enjoying French liberty from prosecution will be celebrating another victory for realpolitik over justice.Dr Andrew WallisDepartment of politics and international studies, University of Cambridge